Santorum makes clear he'll back GOP nominee

Rick Santorum made clear today that he intends to vote for the eventual GOP nominee, as he takes flak for suggesting yesterday that President Obama would be a better choice than Mitt Romney.

"I would never vote for Barack Obama over any Republican and to suggest otherwise is preposterous," Santorum said, adding that he was "simply making the point that there is a huge enthusiasm gap around Mitt Romney."

Romney campaign spokesman Ryan Williams said Santorum is "going off the rails" and "embarrassing himself with ill-advised comments."

Santorum has taken flak from Romney, Gingrich and some conservative pundits for a remark made Thursday in San Antonio. He said:

You win by giving people the opportunity to see a different vision for our country not someone who is just going to be a little different than the person in there. If they're going to be a little different we may as well stay with what we have instead of taking a risk in what may be the Etch A Sketch candidate for the future.

Ed Morrissey, a Santorum supporter, took the ex-Pennsylvania senator to task this morning.

"It seems that Senator Santorum has forgotten the purpose of the Republican primary. It's to choose the most successful candidate to beat Obama in the general election," Morrissey wrote on the conservative HotAir blog. "It isn't to test a few candidates to see whether the goal of beating Obama is worth the bother."

Romney, the GOP front-runner, said Thursday he was "disappointed to hear that Rick Santorum would rather have Barack Obama as president than a Republican. This election is more important than any one person. It is about the future of America. Any of the Republicans running would be better than President Obama and his record of failure."

Gingrich chimed in via Twitter that Santorum was "dead wrong. Any GOP nominee will be better than Obama."

Santorum's comments today followed an interview his spokeswoman, Alice Stewart, gave to CNN explaining the candidate's remarks.

In his statement, Santorum blamed the criticism he's getting on the Romney campaign and suggested it is fanning the claim that he would rather vote for Obama. Santorum noted that Romney has sided with Obama on health care mandates, Wall Street bailouts and on "cap-and-trade" legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

"If this election is about Obama versus the Obama-Lite candidate, we have a tough time rallying this nation," Santorum said.

Williams, the Romney spokesman, said Santorum's "ridiculous suggestion that four more years of Barack Obama is better than electing a Republican demonstrates his lack of commitment to conservative principles."

"Senator Santorum is not only embarrassing himself with his ill-advised comments, he's damaging the conservative movement," Williams said. "In the future, he should think before he speaks."

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About Catalina Camia

Catalina Camia leads the OnPolitics online community and has been at USA TODAY since 2005. She has been a reporter or editor covering politics and Congress for two decades, including stints at The Dallas Morning News and Congressional Quarterly. Follow her at @USATOnPolitics.